Thread 17 - Corona Cohort Summer Vacation to Yr 13, Finding Freedom?

[Orangecinnamon21]

PLACEHOLDER FOR NEW THREAD ...PREVIOUSLY TO BE FOUND IN SECONDARY EDUCATION

Bristol has 2 hour actual tours, in august, but are full. So I won't be going to that! Not that I need to because I did my MA at Bristol, but I'm clearly just a bit desperate to go on an open day. On my own!

Oh Piggy.

Ouch Piggy, sorry to hear that. Exactly what DD is holed up in her room doing right now.

And now he has tested positive on a LFT...

😱😱

Oh no @Piggywaspushed so sorry about the LFT, keeping my fingers crossed for negative PCR. And sorry about the work lost 😞

Oh no @Piggy!
What a disaster.
On the bright side it looks as though our lot will all be vaccinated soon🌞

Dd says did he save it under a name? If so, try going into file explorer? I expect he knows this already (Dd is our ‘tech’ who helps her older sister retrieve stuff).
Fingers crossed it’s a dodgy lft. We’ve had two ‘positives’ that weren’t.

I looked in a few places and it has vanished. Half of it saved at least. I have now shown him how to use Google docs!

If you have access to computer support from school, my friendly team got onto Dd1s computer to retrieve NEA stuff when Dd1 failed.

No, they are useless! He seems to think he'll just do it again.He really is a stoic.

Oh cross-posted. Bitter lesson for your poor Ds. Dd1 still has her moments losing work and she’s currently getting a first at university!

oh Piggy! I bet the there was thunder and lightening in your house!! my DD would take days to get over something like that so I hope your DS is ok and isn't taking it out on everyone.

Southampton isn't on DDs list unfortunately - it's just too far from here, I love there but I do understand. You can tell it's down South as their open day is same time as Park Life festival in Manchester where ALL the Y12/Y13s go apparently.... ;-)

Great news re vaccines. DD is keen to get hers done as soon as she can. She will be 17 and 9 months in September so hopefully she will get called soon from the doctors. I will check nearer the time. There is no point suggesting we just turn up and ask as she would hate that..

I noticed that Bristols tour in August was full as while ago - shame as DD wants to look there. We will hopefully be down south in september so will see what we can see around the area. I've been to Bristol hundreds of times (brought up just an hour away) but never as Mother of potential uni student hat on :-)

EPQ has definitely been binned. I found DD a good MOOC to do and her teacher has agreed it would be better suited for her if the EPQ is stressing her out. I am so impressed with her teacher - she has made weekly appts with 4 of her EPQ students during the holidays, giving up her own time to help them. I feel bad that DD has stopped but her teacher meet DD online to discuss and was brilliant. She has even suggested some more MOOCs to give her more breadth.

@EwwSprouts is your DS doing/done any Moocs for biology? DD teacher suggested doing an applied maths one as will help her along with Biology related one.

@Oblomov21 I love that you are thinking of going around yourself - do you know another parent of similar laid back child (uninsterested child) you could go with?

@Oblomov21 I downloaded a spreadsheet from somewhere last year but can't remember where from!

I think it's difficult to buy too much in advance as it really depend on the accommodation they end up in. They vary in bed size, storage facilities, kitchen space, hob type, appliances, bathroom setup etc. Some allow electricals with a PAT test some don't like many electricals at all. Some don't allow airers.

I think two sets of crockery/cutlery is about right for most settings. Two sets of towels etc. You could get bedding for a double bed, as I think most private rentals in second year have doubles, but it may be a bit bulky for a single bed if space is limited.

@Oblomov21 - I know you said apart from WIWIKAU but have you seen this post
www.wiwikau.co.uk/index.php?threads/604/

Thank you Heifer that was just what I was looking for.
And no I'm not going to even bother trying to find another parent. Sod it! Day trip to Southampton for me. I will enjoy!

no problem Oblo and good for you, I'm not a fan of going somewhere on my own - I've travelled to get someone on my own obviously but have never gone away knowing I wouldn't know anyone once there.

icanbe we are going to splashdown Poole Friday afternoon if your ds fancies.

DS1 has a double duvet on his single bed - cosy in winter and nicer if his GF is allowed to stay over once the rules relax. People generally say don't get to much new stuff as flatmates might wreck out even if your DC is careful. In St Andrews the charity ships are bursting with very good stuff the International students don't take home.

One of our best ideas was a bedroom rug, really made it more homely. I am agree that on the whole, other than personal crockery, it is difficult to know what they need now. I am very into getting mugs made - I got one made on Amazon for DS1 with university crest on one side and the medicine snake symbol on the other for each offer he got. Did the same for his GF - Sheffield Hallam crest one side, clever, studying cat the other side.

Oblomov, apparently 95% get their top two choices for accommodation so worth exploring. You can also take advantage of the free shuttle buses to get into the city centre. I used to like shopping there as everything was in one place Ikea and a big John Lewis, am sure students don't care about such things.

Oh no Piggy what a nightmare 😓

DS has a double duvet on a single bed. Thinking of what we got him which is a bit different as he is back each weekend so needed more stuff . Lamp, alarm clock, door wedge, first aid kit, toiletries, lots of stationery, towels. He has a couple of mugs and bits but obviously didn’t need kitchen stuff . He refused a rug but needed curtains which luckily we had. It does start to add up a bit so a few bits here and there now that you know they will need does help spread the cost.

Nothing from GP about his vaccine. Not sure what we will do when it is his turn. He is going to take a good few weeks I think until the meds are sorted , I think we may be sensible to wait for his first blood test but then he will be back at college and no doubt Covid will be rife. So relieved I took him to GP, I really thought it was due to a busy and stressful year but he is actually really not at all well currently. Hoping he will start to feel better gradually in another week or two.

I didn't buy anything in advance for Ds2. We just hit IKEA & Tk Maxx in a big way once we got the go ahead. A good duvet & pillows plus a rug, blanket & cushions makes them feel cozy. 2 sets of Bedding in case the laundry isn't functioning, plus 3 sets of towels in a specific colour. The kitchens often have very little storage room. I'd be tempted to buy one of those multifunctional pans that do everything- steam, fry, boil. See if you can liaise with your flatmates beforehand as everyone bought lots of pans, graters etc.Fairy lights & those removable sticky pads for sticking photos on the wall are important to personalise the room
Fabric or those cheap plastic sets of drawers are useful for storage.

Dd1 not ds2!
Plus an extension cable in a long length was essential. Often rooms don't have enough plug sockets. Dd's first room the bedside light was mid-air!

The item I've seen most recommended is a door stop. I would never have thought but apparently it really helps DD/DS make friends as they can leave their door open.

Buying it in one go works well if you can afford it but for some people the extra cost of all the bits, accommodation deposit then deposit for year 2 accommodation not that long after can be a lot to cope with. I know quite a few people who really struggled as weren’t aware of it all. Forewarned and all that.